Life Lessons
by Pepper Leigh
Summary: RYPAY FRIENDSHIP. “Ryan, why did you agree to that?” she snapped. “You know I don’t do that kind of stuff!”He thought about the biking trip that he just agreed to go along with, and sighed in realization. Sharpay can’t ride a bike.
1. O N E

The final bell of the day rang one Tuesday afternoon, and Ryan Evans followed his sister to their lockers. He was feeling accomplished, because finally he was making friends, and having fun. He just needed to convince his sister that hanging out with the gang of Wildcats wasn't as horrible as she thought it was.

Last weekend he had actually gotten her to come with them to the mall. She had told him that it was strictly because she needed to buy a new pair of high heels to go with her new outfit, but Ryan knew that it was because Sharpay wanted friends, too. She could deny it all she wanted, but inside, Ryan could always tell if Sharpay was only trying to keep up her image.

"I still don't get why Zeke keeps stalking me," Sharpay told him, opening her locker and stopping to stare at herself in her mirror. She paused to fluff her hair and pucker her lips at herself before retrieving everything she needed to take home. "Well, I do understand why he does it. I mean, look at me--" she gestured to herself, looking at Ryan for a second, "but I wish that he'd stop. He is so out of my league."

"He likes you a lot, Shar," Ryan told her. Sharpay rolled her eyes and handed Ryan the books she needed for the day, slamming her locker shut. "Besides, he's a nice guy, and if you would just give him a chance, he might become less of a stalker."

"Eh, I'm not sure. I've already got my eyes on another guy," she winked at him and spun around on her heels, walking out of the doors that led to the parking lot.

Ryan arrived at their car and put Sharpay's and his books on the roof of it as Sharpay dug in her purse for the car keys.

"Ryan, Sharpay!"

Both twins snapped their heads around to find Troy Bolton running after them, wearing his basketball jersey. He jogged up to Ryan, since Sharpay had already disappeared into the car, seeing who had called them, and not wanting to have to talk to him.

"Hey dude," he said, sounding a bit out of breath from running all the way to the parking lot to catch the Evans twins before they left. "Me and the gang were thinking of getting together at the park on Saturday, and wanted to invite you and Sharpay to come along with us."

"Alright, I think that we're free that day," Ryan said in reply.

"Awesome. We're gonna go biking up that hill, and then have a picnic sort of thing. The girls insisted," he added quickly, not wanting to sound too feminine.

Ryan laughed, "Yeah, we'll be there."

"We're starting around 11 in the morning, so meet us at the front, okay?"

"We will, thanks."

"So, it's settled?"

He nodded, "Yeah, sounds great. We'll meet you at the park Saturday at 11 then?"

"Okay man, see you," Troy said. He ran off to Chad, who was waiting by the doors of East High for him impatiently so they could get to basketball practice before Coach Bolton could reprimand them for being late. 

Ryan smiled to himself. This was one of the first times that he had friends other than his sister, and it felt great. He finally felt that he had a place where he belonged. He looked to his side, wanting to see his sister's reaction to the news as well, but he found her sulking in the passenger seat of her pink convertible.

He was about to ask her what that the matter, but she cut him off before he could say a word.

"Ryan, why did you agree to _that_?" she snapped. "You know I don't do that kind of stuff!"

He thought about the biking trip that he just agreed to go along with, and sighed in realization. _Sharpay can't ride a bike. Sharpay can't ride a bike. Sharpay can't ride a bike. _She never had to. She never wanted to.

When they were younger and their father had bought them bikes with training wheels, Sharpay had bluntly refused to touch, even _look_ at the contraption standing before her, not even when their dad put pink streamers and a matching pink horn on the handlebars. Ryan, on the other hand, picked up on it instantly. He even had his father remove the training wheels by the end of the day.

"Shar, I completely forgot! You can cancel out if you want, or I ask them if we could go to the movies inst--"

"Just drive!"

He stumbled backwards in order to catch the car keys that were thrown at his face. Ryan started up the engine and drove home, every so often pausing to glance at his sister, who just stared out the window, arms folded across her chest. A few minutes later, he pulled into their long driveway and Sharpay opened the door abruptly, stalking out without waiting for him.

Ryan noticed Sharpay's Louis Vuitton bag lying on the passenger seat as he was getting out of the car.

"Shar, you forgot your bag!" he called after her. All he got as a response was the slam of the front door echoing through the neighborhood. Shaking his head, he grabbed the purse on his way out and pressed the lock button on his key. He was going to go try and reason with Sharpay. It was never good when his sister was angry with him.


	2. T W O

Ryan walked into the house and found Sharpay curled up on the white couch examining her French-tip manicured nails. He walked over and sat down next to her, but she made no indication that she knew he was there.

"You left your bag in the car," he said, handing it to her. She took it silently, and then looked away from him. They sat like this for a moment before Ryan ran his fingers through his hair. "Sharpay, listen to me," he began, "you don't have to come with us if you don't want to."

Silence.

"I know," Sharpay said, matter-of-factly.

"I'm just saying, there's always next time. I'm sure that the gang has a bunch of other things planned out for us," he said, hesitantly. Ryan prayed that this discussion would go well. Sharpay usually didn't let people make plans for her. It was normally the other way around.

Sharpay's lips formed a small pout. "But…" Her voice was softer, but it stopped abruptly.

"You want to go, don't you?" Sharpay nodded, avoiding eye contact.

"But you can't?" Ryan finished for her, knowing exactly what Sharpay was thinking. She nodded again.

"I don't know why those Wildcats couldn't have picked out something better. Biking is so…" Sharpay tilted her head to the side, thinking of the right word to use, "unsophisticated." She huffed grumpily. "But I want to."

Sharpay looked at Ryan expectantly. It was almost as if she was silently asking him something, only he couldn't tell what it was.

"How are you going to come, Shar? I mean, I don't think that you know how to ride a bike," he stated.

"No worries, Ryan," she said, eyes glinting like they always did when she had something in mind. "You could…teach me, right?"

Ryan was caught off guard. "Um, well, yeah. I could do that, I guess."

"Really, how hard can it be?" Sharpay asked, standing up. She began to walk to the staircase, a new sense of confidence rising within her. "If those Wildcats can do it, of course I can learn how to ride a bike."

The next afternoon, Sharpay immediately sat in the driver's seat of the car, putting on her sunglasses. Ryan got in the passenger side as Sharpay put the car into reverse and pulled out of the parking lot.

"So, Shar," Ryan said. "Did you want to practice today? When we get home?"

"Whatever, Ryan," she replied airily. "Do as you want to, just as long as it gets me where I'm supposed to be, when I'm supposed to be there."

The rest of the ride was silent until Sharpay pulled into the Evans' driveway.

Just as Sharpay was about to get out, Ryan put his hand on her arm to stop her from leaving.

"Meet me back here in ten minutes, okay?" Sharpay just nodded, and walked away from him, swinging her hips back and forth.

Pressing the button on the remote control that opened the garage door, Ryan went inside and spotted his blue and white 12-speed bike, and rolled it out to the driveway. Sharpay wasn't here yet, so he decided to take it for a test run. He got on and started pedaling in one swift movement. He loved that rush of wind in his hair, and that feeling of freedom.

Ryan didn't know how long he had been out there, when his sister's voice brought him back to the current situation.

"Okay, let's get this show on the road," Sharpay called out to him, standing with her hands on her hips. Ryan braked, and almost burst out laughing when he saw what his sister was wearing. There she stood, clad in a sparkling blue halter top, a glittering white mini-skirt and silver belt, complete with hoop earrings, bracelets, silver high-heels, and her hair up in pigtails.

"Shar, we're riding bikes, not going to a fashion show," he said. He pointed to her high heels. "You are _definitely_ not wearing those. Don't you have anything _comfortable_ to wear?"

"These _are_ comfortable, Ryan," she retorted.

"Go change, Sharpay. You can wear that some other time, but not now."

She glared at him before saying, "I don't have anything else! I don't dress like that Gabriella girl, for your information."

Ryan sighed in frustration. "Come on then," He pulled her back into the house to find a more suitable outfit for her. Something that wouldn't help kill her.

In Ryan's room, Ryan was rummaging in his closet for something that Sharpay could wear. Meanwhile, Sharpay pouted, sitting cross-legged on his bed.

"Sorry, Sharpay," Ryan looked through a pile of folded pants, then another. "I just don't think those clothes you're wearing are appropriate for these lessons I'm giving you." He moved across the giant walk-in closet and sifted through the drawers. "Not to mention unsafe. Here they are!" Ryan came out of the closet and held up a pair of his old black sweatpants.

"You've got to be kidding me," Sharpay said, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

"I'm not," he said. "And if you want to do this before Saturday, you have to oblige."

Sharpay tentatively reached out a hand and grabbed the sweats. "Is this all?"

"Change into those, and find a t-shirt or something," Ryan said, and he started to leave the bedroom. "If you have any tennis shoes, that would be great."

"Okay, okay, I get it," Sharpay said sullenly. "I'll just look like a peon and forget all about my image, and on top of all that, I'll get on that bike and make a complete fool out of myself…"

Remembering another thing, Ryan stopped in his tracks and faced his sister. "Oh, and take off that jewelry. It'll make things easier." He smiled smugly as Sharpay let out a squeaky breath of frustration.

Chuckling lightly, he went back into the yard and picked up his bike from the grass where he had left it. Making sure all the parts were intact, he brought it back onto the driveway and set it on its kickstand.

Finally, Sharpay came out, shoulders slightly slumped.

"I look like a huge fashion "don't"," she mumbled.

Ryan gave her the once-over and decided that she was okay to go. She didn't have tennis shoes of any kind, but she was wearing flats, which were close enough. Sharpay stood in the same spot awkwardly for a moment.

"Well, what do I do?"

_First things first,_ Ryan thought. "Come over here, and get on."

Sharpay's eyes widened slightly as she went over to where her brother stood. "Are you sure it's safe? It would _not_ be good if I came to school tomorrow with a broken arm, or a broken neck, or laryngitis or something--"

"Shar, you can't get laryngitis from riding a bike," Ryan said, smiling.

"Yeah, well, you never know," she said indignantly. The only thing that would give away her true feelings were her eyes. When Ryan peered into them he saw nervousness, so he took her hand and walked over to the other side of the bike, so that they were on opposite sides.

"Here, just straddle the seat, as if you were riding a horse," Ryan instructed. Sharpay gripped Ryan's hand tighter as she used her other hand to hold onto the handlebar. She sat down and slowly let go of Ryan's hand.

_Let's see how this goes._ "Okay, I'm going to take it off the kickstand," Ryan told her.

"Kickstand? What's a ki—AHH!" Sharpay shrieked when she felt the bike wobble underneath her. "Ryan, don't let go. Please don't let go." She gripped both of the handlebars as if her life depended on it.

"Shar, calm down. You're not even moving yet."

"Okay…" she said softly. Ryan wheeled Sharpay down the driveway and into the street, where the ground was pretty level. He switched his hands from the handlebars to the back of the seat.

"What are you doing?" she asked, voice rising in pitch.

"Nothing. Now, put you feet on the pedals."

Sharpay did as she was told, then looked back at Ryan. "Don't let go, okay?" She sure didn't look happy at the moment.

"I won't, Shar," he reassured. "Alright, now start pedaling, and use the handlebars to direct you in the direction you want to go," Sharpay pedaled slowly and turned the handlebars sharply to the right, making the bike swerve dangerously close to somebody else's mailbox.

"Am I doing it right?" she asked.

"I suggest that you keep going straight, but other than that, you're doing fine," he said. Sharpay turned the handlebars back to its previous position, and they were headed down the long road.

A few times, Sharpay had teetered unsteadily, and Ryan had to put a steadying hand on her waist. He decided to ignore the fact that every time he came in contact with her, a strange feeling of contentedness seemed to shoot through his fingertips and make his entire body shiver. But her body was so warm, and it reminded Ryan of all the times that she had found it necessary to wrap her arms around his neck, whether it be because she was afraid, or merely because she had had a good day and wanted to share it with him. These occasions were rare, but whenever Ryan was blessed with such an occasion, he seemed to melt into her embrace.

As a matter of fact, a couple of times Ryan had to shake his head in order to clear his mind.


End file.
